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Search indexed NASA NTRS and DOE OSTI research on propulsion, heat transfer, battery materials and energy systems. Follow report and document links to the original sources.

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All sourcesNASA NTRSDOE OSTI
DOE OSTI2025

Unraveling the structure of molten salts: a review of high-energy x-ray diffraction (HEXRD) studies

High energy x-ray diffraction (HEXRD) has emerged as a pivotal technique for examining the structural properties of molten salts, which play vital roles in various high-temperature applications, such as energy storage, nuclear reactors, and metallurgy. This review provides a comprehensive analysis of recent progress in HEXRD studies of various molten salt systems, including molten halide salts, their mixtures, and salts with molecular anions, focusing on the insights into their atomic-scale arrangements. Additionally, we discuss methodological advancements that have improved the resolution and accuracy of HEXRD measurements, as well as recent developments in computational simulations, such as machine learning interatomic potentials, for interpreting results. This review aims to serve as a valuable resource for researchers in this field, offering a detailed overview of the progress of HEXRD studies of molten salts and suggesting pathways for further exploration.

Blockmon, Avery L. [Argonne National Laboratory (A↗
DOE OSTI2022

The effect of oxygen concentration on the speciation of laser ablated uranium

Abstract In order to model the fate and transport of particles following a nuclear explosion, there must first be an understanding of individual physical and chemical processes that affect particle formation. One interaction pertinent to fireball chemistry and resultant debris formation is that between uranium and oxygen. In this study, we use laser ablation of uranium metal in different concentrations of oxygen gas, either 16 O 2 or 18 O 2 , to determine the influence of oxygen on rapidly cooling uranium. Analysis of recovered particulates using infrared absorption and Raman spectroscopies indicate that the micrometer-sized particulates are predominantly amorphous UO x (am-UO x , where 3 ≤ x ≤ 4) and UO 2 after ablation in 1 atm of pure O 2 and a 1% O 2 /Ar mixture, respectively. Energy dispersive X-ray spectroscopy (EDS) of particulates formed in pure O 2 suggest an O/U ratio of ~ 3.7, consistent with the vibrational spectroscopy analysis. Both am-UO x and UO 2 particulates convert to α-U 3 O 8 when heated. Lastly, experiments performed in 18 O 2 environments show the formation of 18 O-substituted uranium oxides; vibrational frequencies for am-U 18 O x are reported for the first time. When compared to literature, this work shows that cooling timescales can affect the structural composition of uranium oxides (i.e., crystalline vs. amorphous). This indicator can be used in current models of nuclear explosions to improve our predicative capabilities of chemical speciation.

37 INORGANIC, ORGANIC, PHYSICAL, AND ANALYTICAL CH↗
DOE OSTI2020

Quantifying cover crop effects on soil health and productivity

The dataset presented here supports the research paper entitled “A calculator to quantify cover crop effects on soil health and productivity”. Soil health (sometimes used synonymously with soil quality) is a concept that describes soil as a living system to sustain plants, animals, and human. Soil physical, chemical, and biological properties, along with their interactions, are required to quantify soil health. The use of cover crops in agricultural rotations may enhance soil health, yet there has been little progress in understanding how external factors such as climate, soil type, and agronomic practices affect soil and cash crop responses. In response, this dataset compiles measurements from 281 studies and provides an analysis of field-measured changes in 38 soil health indicators due to cover crop usage. Environmental and background indicators were also compiled to assess how climatic and management practices affect soil and cash crop responses to cover crops, with specific categories including climate type (tropical, arid, temperate, and continental), soil texture (coarse, medium, and fine), cover crop type (legume, grass, multi-species mixture, and other), and cash crop type (corn, soybean, wheat, vegetable, corn-soybean rotation, corn-soybean-wheat rotation, and other). An unbalanced analysis of variation was used to determine the hierarchy of most to least important factors that affected responsiveness of each soil health indicator. Based on the hierarchy structure, a soil health calculator was then developed to quantify the response of 13 parameters – erosion, runoff, weed suppression, soil aggregate stability, leaching, infiltration, microbial biomass carbon, soil bulk density, soil organic carbon, soil nitrogen, microbial biomass nitrogen, cash crop yield, and saturated hydraulic conductivity – to cover crops. The presented data in the calculator report the mean change in parameter values based on all combinations of climate, soil texture, cover crop type, and cash crop type.

54 ENVIRONMENTAL SCIENCES↗
DOE OSTI2022

Likelihood Maximization and Moment Matching in Low SNR Gaussian Mixture Models

We derive an asymptotic expansion for the log-likelihood of Gaussian mixture models (GMMs) with equal covariance matrices in the low signal-to-noise regime. The expansion reveals an intimate connection between two types of algorithms for parameter estimation: the method of moments and likelihood optimizing algorithms such as Expectation-Maximization (EM). We show that likelihood optimization in the low SNR regime reduces to a sequence of least squares optimization problems that match the moments of the estimate to the ground truth moments one by one. This connection is a stepping stone towards the analysis of EM and maximum likelihood estimation in a wide range of models. A motivating application for the study of low SNR mixture models is cryo-electron microscopy data, which can be modeled as a GMM with algebraic constraints imposed on the mixture centers. We discuss the application of our expansion to algebraically constrained GMMs, among other example models of interest. © 2022 The Authors. Communications on Pure and Applied Mathematics published by Wiley Periodicals LLC.

97 MATHEMATICS AND COMPUTING↗
DOE OSTI2024

The Role of Spin–Orbit Coupling in the Linear Absorption Spectrum and Intersystem Crossing Rate Coefficients of Ruthenium Polypyridyl Dyes

The successful use of molecular dyes for solar energy conversion requires efficient charge injection, which in turn requires the formation of states with sufficiently long lifetimes (e.g., triplets). The molecular structure elements that confer this property can be found empirically, however computational predictions using ab initio electronic structure methods are invaluable to identify structure-property relations for dye sensitizers. The primary challenge for simulations to elucidate the electronic and nuclear origins of these properties is a spin-orbit interaction which drives transitions between electronic states. Here, in this work, we present a computational analysis of the spin-orbit corrected linear absorption cross sections and intersystem crossing rate coefficients for a derivative set of phosphonated tris(2,2'-bipyridine)ruthenium(2+) dye molecules. After sampling the ground state vibrational distributions, the predicted linear absorption cross sections indicate that the mixture between singlet and triplet states plays a crucial role in defining the line shape of the metal-to-ligand charge transfer bands in these derivatives. Additionally, an analysis of the intersystem crossing rate coefficients suggests that transitions from the singlet into the triplet manifolds are ultrafast with rate coefficients on the order of 10 13 s -1 for each dye molecule.

37 INORGANIC, ORGANIC, PHYSICAL, AND ANALYTICAL CH↗
DOE OSTI2025

Effect of Solvents on Lignin–Surface Interactions via Molecular Dynamics Simulations

Lignin, an essential building block of lignocellulosic biomass, is a potential abundant source of aromatic monomers for the polymer and chemical industry. Reductive catalytic fractionation (RCF) is one promising process that can produce high yields of phenolic monomers and oligomers from lignin under different catalytic conditions. An important choice in optimizing RCF is the selection of solvent; however, detailed insights into solvent effects on lignin behaviors and interactions remain limited. Here, in this work, we perform all-atom molecular dynamics simulations to study the solvation of lignin, solvent-mediated conformational changes, and the interaction of solvated lignin oligomers with model surfaces. We focus on the behavior of an oligomeric lignin model compound in methanol, ethanol, a binary mixture of ethanol and water, and water at both the RCF reaction temperature (473 K) and room temperature. Analysis of structural features of lignin suggests that these three organic solvent systems favorably solvate lignin, resulting in a more extended conformation suitable for catalytic conversion to valuable chemicals. We further introduce model palladium (Pd) and carbon (C) surfaces to understand how solvent choice impacts adsorption onto a representative catalytic surface and support, and to quantify the competition among the reactant and solvent molecules for the surface. Unbiased simulations suggest strong adsorption of lignin on both Pd and C surfaces at 473 K, with notable solvent-mediated differences in adsorption energies. Additionally, our findings indicate that lignin adsorption is promoted by the entropy change resulting from the displacement of solvent molecules from the surface. This study provides a molecular perspective of adsorption of lignin onto varying surfaces, which is a step towards understanding and optimizing the catalytic conversion of lignin into valuable chemicals.

adsorption↗
DOE OSTI2020

Microphase Separation in Polyelectrolyte Blends: Weak Segregation Theory and Relation to Nuclear "Pasta".

We develop the weak segregation theory of micro phase separation in stoichiometric blends of oppositely and weakly charged polyelectrolytes, which would be immiscible in the absence of charged units. Short-range repulsions between polycation and polyanion monomers induce the formation of oppositely charged domains, the size of which is controlled by their excess Coulomb energy. The diagram of blend morphologies is constructed in the framework of Leibler's mean-field approach and to account for fluctuations within the Brazovskii-Fredrickson-Helfand approximation. Phase behavior of the polyelectrolyte blends is fully analogous to that of neutral diblock copolymers. The mean-field analysis predicts that the order-disorder transition (ODT) is second order for the symmetric blend. In asymmetric mixtures, an increasing incompatibility between polyelectrolytes triggers the usual cascade of first-order phase transitions, dis -> bcc -> hex -> lam. Fluctuations alter the phase diagram topology and allow the direct transitions from the disordered state (dis) to hex and lam microphases; for the symmetric blend, ODT becomes weakly first order. We also discuss that both microphase separation in polyelectrolyte blends and the formation of nuclear "pasta" phases within neutron stars are governed by similar physical principles, despite the 6 orders of magnitude difference in the periods of these structures.

Rumyantsev, Artem M.↗
DOE OSTI2025

Three and Two Phase Rotating Field Inductive Couplers for Wireless Power Transfer with One Phase per Layer Windings

Multiphase inductive wireless charging coils have been proposed recently to improve coupler surface power density, reduce component stress and size, and provide near-constant power delivery to charge mobile electric systems. Several aspects for the fundamental characterization of multiphase coils are explored up to six phases including approximate mutual inductance with size and turn variation, induced voltage, and output power estimation. The relative component stress and size of passive components for resonant operation are compared between the multiphase variants. A combination of an experimentally validated 3D electromagnetic finite element analysis (FEA) and power electronic co-simulations are used to validate the estimated quantities approximated with a mixture of analytical equations and an artificial neural network model for mutual inductance. A novel three-phase transmitter, two-phase receiver coil pair is also proposed for electric vehicle charging to reduce the number of connections and compensation complexity on the vehicle-side with improved power output compared to a two-phase configuration.

Lewis, Donovin D. [University of Kentucky]↗
DOE OSTI2021

Temperature Effects on Droplet Oscillation Decay with Application to Fuel Property Measurement

Observation of oscillation decay in droplets has been shown to be an effective approach in determining physical properties such as viscosity and surface tension for emerging biofuels using μl quantities. Herein this work extends the approach to higher temperatures relevant to fuel injection conditions for internal combustion engines. Experiments are conducted that use high-resolution strobed imaging of moving, heated, μm-sized, fuel droplets to capture shape oscillation decay through image processing and analysis. Two fuels are investigated, iso-butanol and a primary reference fuel (PRF 84), which is a mixture of iso-octane and n-heptane. A piezoelectric droplet generator is used to generate a continuous train of single droplets, which are given an initial perturbation and subsequently undergo damped oscillations, captured using strobed imaging. Surface tension and viscosity calculated at four different temperatures ranging from 30°C-55°C using the frequency and decay time associated with the fundamental mode are found to be within ~ 10% of reference values obtained from the literature. Complementary numerical simulations are performed that utilize a volume-of-fluid approach to track transient droplet oscillation phenomena along with heat and mass transfer in a 2D axisymmetric domain. Simulations, where droplet size and temperature can be independently varied, capture an expected decrease in oscillation frequency and increase in decay time, with increase in fuel temperature. The simulations are further used to study the relative contribution to deviations in surface tension and viscosity predictions due to heat and mass transfer from the droplet, as well as viscous effects violating the inviscid flow assumption in the droplet oscillation theory. Mass loss effects are found to be negligible. Temperature change due to heat transfer is found to have the next highest sensitivity, particularly for the more volatile PRF 84, which has a lower viscosity and associated Ohnesorge number. For isobutanol, which has a higher viscosity and Ohnesorge number, viscous effects contribute the most to deviation in fuel property predictions.

09 BIOMASS FUELS↗
DOE OSTI2020

Drying Spent Magnox Fuel for Interim Dry Storage

Spent Magnox fuel is usually stored under water for shielding and cooling following use in-reactor, but the storage water can react with Magnox clad fuel and cause corrosion and forms a sludge which generates a secondary waste product. One option to prevent unwanted corrosion and avoid expensive waste management is to dry the wet fuel. This project aims to test a drying process which will convert wet and corroded Magnox fuel to a stable form to demonstrate viability for conversion from wet to dry storage. Samples of corroded Magnox supplied by National Nuclear Laboratory. Corrosion product retrieved by various methods including dry scraping, ultrasonic treatment to form sludge and sludge drying to isolate suspension. TGA undertaken on Sample 1 and Sample 2, with brucite and hydromagnesite for comparison. Both samples showed ∼10% mass loss up to 250 deg. C attributable to water held in sample. Mass loss from dehydroxylation which liberates further water in both samples. TGA data plotted alongside chemically pure brucite and hydromagnesite shows expected similarities/differences between Sample 1(mostly brucite) and Sample 2 (brucite/hydromagnesite mixture). Following treatment, dried samples observed to slowly gain mass in ambient conditions. Presumed to be hygroscopic absorption of air water vapour as effect is reversible, with similar effect observed for hydromagnesite and brucite. Etched Magnox vacuum dried for 3.5 h at 90 deg. C to test for reaction with residual water - some discoloration but no noticeable corrosion observed. Drying etched Magnox metal to observe surface effects/corrosion during drying process.

12 MANAGEMENT OF RADIOACTIVE AND NON-RADIOACTIVE W↗
DOE OSTI2021

Effects of Cement Changes and Aggregate System on Mechanical Properties of Concrete

In this paper, mechanical properties of concrete mixtures containing different cementitious combinations and two aggregate systems were investigated under plastic and drying conditions. Emphasis was laid on durability and shrinkage of concrete. Life Cycle Analysis was also conducted by using Green Concrete LCA Webtool. Results indicated that the presence of larger aggregate sizes tend to enhance durability of concrete. The presence of nanosilica also imparted superior mechanical properties to concrete. A cementitious combination containing Portland Limestone Cement and fly ash with larger aggregate sizes emerged as a better performing mixture in terms of mechanical properties and with minimum environmental impact.

36 MATERIALS SCIENCE↗
DOE OSTI2023

Alkaline-SDS cell lysis of microbes with acetone protein precipitation for proteomic sample preparation in 96-well plate format

Plate-based proteomic sample preparation offers a solution to the large sample throughput demands in the biotechnology field where hundreds or thousands of engineered microbes are constructed for testing is routine. Meanwhile, sample preparation methods that work efficiently on broader microbial groups are desirable for new applications of proteomics in other fields, such as microbial communities. Here, we detail a step-by-step protocol that consists of cell lysis in an alkaline chemical buffer (NaOH/SDS) followed by protein precipitation with high-ionic strength acetone in 96-well format. The protocol works for a broad range of microbes ( e . g ., Gram-negative bacteria, Gram-positive bacteria, non-filamentous fungi) and the resulting proteins are ready for tryptic digestion for bottom-up quantitative proteomic analysis without the need for desalting column cleanup. The yield of protein using this protocol increases linearly with respect to the amount of starting biomass from 0.5–2.0 OD*mL of cells. By using a bench-top automated liquid dispenser, a cost-effective and environmentally-friendly option to eliminating pipette tips and reducing reagent waste, the protocol takes approximately 30 minutes to extract protein from 96 samples. Tests on mock mixtures showed expected results that the biomass composition structure is in close agreement with the experimental design. Lastly, we applied the protocol for the composition analysis of a synthetic community of environmental isolates grown on two different media. This protocol has been developed to facilitate rapid, low-variance sample preparation of hundreds of samples and allow flexibility for future protocol development.

59 BASIC BIOLOGICAL SCIENCES↗
DOE OSTI2025

Dominant balance-based adaptive mesh refinement for incompressible fluid flows

This work introduces a novel adaptive mesh refinement (AMR) method that utilizes dominant balance analysis (DBA) for efficient and accurate grid adaptation in computational fluid dynamics (CFD) simulations. The proposed method leverages a Gaussian mixture model (GMM) to classify grid cells into active and passive regions based on the dominant physical interactions within the equation space. By modeling truncation error probabilistically from discretized terms, the method identifies regions of high interaction where numerical accuracy is most sensitive to resolution. Unlike traditional AMR strategies, this approach does not rely on heuristic-based sensors or user-defined thresholds, providing a fully automated and problem-independent framework for AMR. Applied to the incompressible Navier-Stokes equations for steady and unsteady flow past a cylinder, the DBA-based AMR method achieves comparable accuracy to high-resolution grids while reducing computational costs by up to 70 %. The validation highlights the method’s effectiveness in capturing complex flow features while minimizing grid cells, directing computational resources toward regions with the most critical dynamics. This modular and scalable strategy is adaptable to a wide range of applications, presenting a promising tool for efficient high-fidelity simulations in CFD and other multiphysics domains.

71 CLASSICAL AND QUANTUM MECHANICS, GENERAL PHYSIC↗
DOE OSTI2020

Data-Driven Many-Body Models for Molecular Fluids: CO 2 /H 2 O Mixtures as a Case Study

In this study, we extend the scope of the many-body TTM-nrg and MB-nrg potential energy functions (PEFs), originally introduced for halide ion–water and alkali-metal ion–water interactions, to the modeling of carbon dioxide (CO2) and water (H2O) mixtures as prototypical examples of molecular fluids. Both TTM-nrg and MB-nrg PEFs are derived entirely from electronic structure data obtained at the coupled cluster level of theory and are, by construction, compatible with MB-pol, a many-body PEF that has been shown to accurately reproduce the properties of water. Although both TTM-nrg and MB-nrg PEFs adopt the same functional forms for describing permanent electrostatics, polarization, and dispersion, they differ in the representation of short-range contributions, with the TTM-nrg PEFs relying on conventional Born–Mayer expressions and the MB-nrg PEFs employing multidimensional permutationally invariant polynomials. By providing a physically correct description of many-body effects at both short and long ranges, the MB-nrg PEFs are shown to quantitatively represent the global potential energy surfaces of the CO 2 –CO 2 and CO 2 –H 2 O dimers and the energetics of small clusters, as well as to correctly reproduce various properties in both gas and liquid phases. Furthermore, building upon previous studies of aqueous systems, our analysis provides further evidence for the accuracy and efficiency of the MB-nrg framework in representing molecular interactions in fluid mixtures at different temperature and pressure conditions.

37 INORGANIC, ORGANIC, PHYSICAL, AND ANALYTICAL CH↗
DOE OSTI2025

Comparative transcriptomic and phenotypic analysis of monoclonal and polyclonal Populus deltoides genotypes

Populus species are highly valued for bioenergy and bioproducts due to their rapid growth and productivity. Polyclonal plantings, or mixtures of Populus clones, have shown the potential to enhance resource utilization and productivity, likely due to phenotypic differences arising from niche differentiation. In this study, we investigated gene expression and productivity in monoclonal and polyclonal stands of P. deltoides . Phenotypic results showed that polyclonal plots exhibited higher leaf area index (LAI; p < 0.01, 2.96 ± 0.057 m 2 ) and total biomass (p < 0.01, 2.74 ± 0.06) compared to monoclonal plots, indicating superior productivity. RNA sequencing revealed upregulation of key genes such as exocyst subunit exo70 family protein H7 (EXO70H7), NDH-dependent cyclic electron flow 5 (NDF5) , and expansin-like A3 (EXLA3) . We also observed enrichment in phenylalanine metabolism and other secondary metabolic pathways in clone S7C8. Phenotypic results, upregulated genes and enriched biological pathways identified in this study may explain the enhanced productivity, increased nitrate content, and expanded canopy in polyclonal plantings. Overall, this study provides a foundation for future research to enhance forest productivity by linking molecular mechanisms to practical applications in field plantings.

differential gene expression↗
DOE OSTI2025

Flux-Assisted Boron Chalcogen Mixture (BCM) Method for Synthesizing Mixed Chalcogenide Semiconductors (AkRE 2 Si 2 Se x S 8– x and CaRE 2 Si 2 Se 8 ) ( Ak = Ca and Sr; RE = La, Ce, Pr, Nd, and Sm): Investigation of Their Magnetic and Optical Properties

We report a detailed structural analysis of a series of ten quaternary rare-earth-containing seleno-thiosilicates AkRE 2 Si 2 Se x S 8-x and selenosilicates, CaRE 2 Si 2 Se 8 (Ak = Ca and Sr; RE = La, Ce, Pr, Nd, and Sm). Single crystals were obtained by using the flux-assisted boron chalcogen mixture (BCM) method and single crystal X-ray diffraction was used to determine their structures. All members of the AkRE 2 Si 2 Se x S 8-x and CaRE 2 Si 2 Se 8 series crystallize in the space group R$\bar{3}$c (space group number 167) of the trigonal crystal system. The single-crystal X-ray diffraction analysis revealed a strong preference for Se/S atoms to occupy one vs. the other of the two available sites. Polycrystalline samples were used for magnetic susceptibility and UV–visible diffuse reflectance measurements. Magnetic measurements show that CaCe₂Si₂Se₁.₇₃S₆.₂₇ and CaNd₂Si₂Se₂.₅S₅.₅ are paramagnetic with negative Weiss constants (θ = –60.1 and –26.2). Diffuse reflectance analysis gives optical band gaps of 2.7(1) eV (CaLa₂Si₂Se₂.₃₈S₅.₆₂), 2.2(1) eV (CaCe₂Si₂Se₁.₇₃S₆.₂₇), 2.5(1) eV (CaNd₂Si₂Se₂.₅S₅.₅), and 2.0(1) eV (CaCe₂Si₂Se₈), consistent with density functional theory calculations. By partially or fully replacing S sites with Se it was possible to achieve band gap tuning. Photoluminescence behavior was also investigated for CaCe 2 Si 2 Se 1.73 S 6.27 via irradiation with 375 nm ultraviolet light.

BCM method↗
DOE OSTI2021

In-situ Photophysical Monitors and Corrective Algorithms for Photovoltaic Film Deposition and Rapid Thermal Processing in Scalable Roll-to-Roll Manufacturing

This project evaluated three photophysics-based approaches for in situ process monitoring of the scalable deposition of perovskite photovoltaic films. Based on stakeholder input and the results of laboratory trials and literature analysis, two techniques, angle resolved elastic light scattering (ARLS) and time-resolved photoluminescence (TRPL) were prototyped and demonstrated with a mixture of simulation, offline and online tests. Also, a hybrid gas flow and humidity control enclosure was constructed and demonstrated to stabilize the ambient conditions around the slot die deposition process and were demonstrated to meet the target humidity control in situ. Due in part to a delayed start and COVID-related lab restrictions and personnel changes, some of the milestones were not met. In spite of these challenges, however, both techniques were prototyped through several iterations and demonstrated significant promise for rapid in line perovskite characterization within the targeted characterization time windows and these techniques are under further development for use in DE-FOA000235:2357-1586. The TRPL system was fully mounted and demonstrated on the scaled slot die roll to roll and sheet coating systems at the Washington Clean Energy Testbeds (WCET). Motivated by significant internal and stakeholder interest, the successful prototyping achieved here, the ongoing need for in-situ characterization for the scale-up of perovskite manufacturing, and the benefits of in situ photophysical characterization for future funded process development research, we are continuing with the principle aims of the project to develop effect in situ photophysical probes for fast analysis of the optoelectronic and structural quality of sheet based and roll to roll process perovskites. TRPLS and ARLS probes proposed in the project are to be completed with external support from the Washington Research Foundation at the WCET. We are currently actively engaged in the acquisition of components and plan to complete and test the probes within three months. It is our intention that these probes will then be used in ongoing perovskite development with our research and commercialization partners including First Solar and other member of the US MAP consortium in future funded development work.

14 SOLAR ENERGY↗
DOE OSTI2021

Simulation of 12-bed vacuum pressure-swing adsorption for hydrogen separation from methanol-steam reforming off-gas

This study focuses on analysis of a 12-bed vacuum pressure-swing adsorption (VPSA) process capable of purifying hydrogen from a ternary mixture (H 2 /CO 2 /CO 75/24/1 mol%) derived from methanol-steam reforming. The process produces 9 kmol H 2 /h with less than 2 ppm and 0.2 ppm of CO2 and CO, respectively, to supply a polymer electrolyte membrane fuel cell. The process model is developed in Aspen Adsorption® using the “uni-bed” approach. A parametric study of H 2 purity and recovery with respect to adsorption pressure, adsorbent height, activated carbon:zeolite ratio, feed composition, and number of beds is performed. Results show 12-bed VPSA can meet the H 2 purity goals, with H 2 recovery as high as 75.75%. Adsorption occurs at 7 bar, the column height is 1.2 m, and the adsorbent ratio is 70%:30%. Furthermore, a 4-bed VPSA can achieve the same purity goals as the 12-bed process, but H 2 recovery decreases to 61.34%.

03 NATURAL GAS↗